Looking at purchasing first Cat

I'm looking at purchasing either a brand new Hobie 16 or a 2004 Hobie Tiger 18. Please let me know which boat you think is a better boat. I'm going to sailing the boat primarily solo. I would like to get into racing, but mainly cruising. I live in Jackson, MS but will be sailing it in Destin as well. Any advise would be great.

18 Tiger or just H18? How big are you?

It sounds like the 16 may be your boat, there's a very active racing fleet... and it's a fun boat to solo. Racing can be hard if you're closer to 200 lbs unless you have a tiny crew.


The 18 Tiger is probably going to be a handful if you're out by yourself. Harder to rig/right/ and keep the hull down solo than a H16. An old H18 is very forgiving for the larger groups... and it's the forum this query is posted in.

I've you've got an active local tiger or F18 fleet, you can race it, and if you've got plenty of experience you can probably figure out a way to solo it safely.

Have fun either way.

Tom

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Tom
Fleet 259, Central Coast CA
H18 ('81)
H18 ('85)
H20 ('97)
H18 ('78)

The Tiger is a two-person boat, so get the 16. Or a Wave.

What is your sailing experience?

while a H18 can be solo sailed just fine if the conditions are not too heavy, you'd better not capsize 'cause you'll never get her back up by yourself, even with a righting bag.

(opinion) the H18 is a better all-around boat than the H16, but it's 400lb weight is something to consider.

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Chris
'88 H18SE Arís

My weight is 185lbs, and will primarily be sailing alone. Is that going to be to hard to right if capsized?

You can't right either boat without some sort of help, there are righting rods and buckets to help increase your leverage.

Tom

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Tom
Fleet 259, Central Coast CA
H18 ('81)
H18 ('85)
H20 ('97)
H18 ('78)

My sailing experience is primarily on monohulls from 21 to 41ft in length throughout the Caribbean, and Long Island Sound. I was wanting to see if the Hobie 18 was to large to sail single handed if capsized?

Any of the Hobiecats are going to be near impossible to right by yourself at 185, I know there are shroud release tools, righting rods and other such things to help you right it. I've sailed an 18 solo in decent wind and found it predictable enough to greatly reduce to risk of capsize, but the weight that makes it more stable makes it harder to right. I'm 185 myself. I haven't been able to right a Hobie 16 by myself.

Tom

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Tom
Fleet 259, Central Coast CA
H18 ('81)
H18 ('85)
H20 ('97)
H18 ('78)

Honestly, I don't think you should base your purchase decision on whether you can upright the boat. How about a ride with a local owner? Ive been single-handing my '81 H-18 for a lot of years. If you evaluate and consider sailing location, conditions, etc., as always, be smart, and recognize your limitations, you shouldn't have capsize issues. I know you can never be 100% sure of conditions or your own errors, I don't sail if I don't have pre-arranged help from a jet-skier, boater, or sailing companions. Organized races will provide power-boat assistance for uprighting.

I started with a H-16 which is a really fun boat, both with crew and solo. Time on the water on this boat will teach you a lot about Hobiecat sailing. Your experience with mono-hulls will be of obvious help.

Moved up to the 18 and have not looked to change. Ive raced and sailed with Prindles, Nacras, Seasprays, and other beachcats in the 14-20' range and found my 18 to be the best for my needs, location, and experience. Sailing with crew and introducing newbies to cat sailing is great on the 18 also, and produces lots of gasps and giggles.

Single-handing the 18 puts a lot of power in your hands, and it is a tremendous rush to trap-out and feel like the boat is an extension of you. Great sense of pride to be able to handle the boat through a regatta in stiff winds and stay upright and competitive. Or just a fun day riding the wind.

I agree, you will not upright your H-18 alone, but the video I just watched on this forum involving a righting lever looks interesting.

Start with a used H-16 if you intend to start solo. Then make a decision about a bigger boat.

Have fun regardless.

The best advice so far in this thread is to get a ride on both the 16 and 18. You might as well try before you buy if you have the opportunity. You should be able to right the 16 with a little bit of help. The 18, you will need a righting pole. There are several examples on this forum and on the internet. See which one fits your mission the best and go from there.

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Nick

Current Boat
In the market
Previous boats owned
'74 Pearson 30
'84 H16
'82 H18 Magnum
St. Louis, MO

In my humble opinion the H18 is actually an easier boat to solo than the H16 once you're on the water (easier to tack, easier to manage the jib, better handling in choppy water, more tuning/de-tuning options). It's also less prone to capsize due to the dreaded pitch pole.

But don't mistake the H18 for a Tiger simply because they're both 18 foot cats. The Tiger is no starter boat (experienced sailor or not) nor is it a boat you want to plow up on the beach a dozen times every weekend. The Tiger is a high performance two-man race boat that will make you pay for your mistakes in a hurry. You're much better off going with the H16 or, if you will have mast up storage, finding a used H18. I love my H18 and sail it solo most of the time but I wouldn't want to have to rig it by myself every weekend if I didn't have mast-up storage.